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Background: Sickle cell disease (SCD) comprises a heterogeneous group of inherited hemolytic disorders that increases the risk of maternal and perinatal complications due to chronic systemic inflammatory response, endothelial damage and vaso-occlusion. The contribution of genotypes to the severity of outcomes during pregnancy is not completely established., Methods: A retrospective study of medical charts was performed to compare maternal and perinatal outcomes in Hb SS, Hb SC disease and sickle-beta thalassemia (Hb Sβ) pregnancies followed at a high-risk antenatal care unit over a 6-year period. A descriptive analysis of morphological findings was performed of the placenta when pathology reports were available., Results: Sixty-two SCD pregnant women [25 Hb SS (40 %), 29 Hb SC (47 %) and 8 Hb Sβ (13 %)] were included. Overall, SCD was associated with maternal complications (77 %), preterm birth (30 %), cesarean section (80 %) and a need of blood transfusion. In general there were no statistically significant differences between genotypes. The only significant difference was the hemoglobin level at first antenatal care visit which was lower for the homozygous genotype (7.7 g/dL) compared to Hb SC and Hb Sβ (9.7 g/dL and 8.4 g/dL, respectively; p-value = 0.01). Ten of 15 evaluated placentas showed abnormal morphological findings CONCLUSION: SCD, regardless of the underlying genotype, is associated with increased adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes and placental abnormalities associated with maternal vascular malperfusion., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Associação Brasileira de Hematologia, Hemoterapia e Terapia Celular. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To assess maternal mortality (MM) in Brazilian Black, Pardo, and White women., Methods: We evaluated the maternal mortality rate (MMR) using data from the Brazilian Ministry of Health public databases from 2017 to 2022. We compared MMR among Black, Pardo, and White women according to the region of the country, age, and cause. For statistical analysis, the Q2 test prevalence ratio (PR) and confidence interval (CI) were calculated., Results: From 2017 to 2022, the general MMR was 68.0/100,000 live births (LB). The MMR was almost twice as high among Black women compared to White (125.81 vs 64.15, PR = 1.96, 95%CI:1.84-2.08) and Pardo women (125.8 vs 64.0, PR = 1.96, 95%CI: 1.85-2.09). MMR was higher among Black women in all geographical regions, and the Southeast region reached the highest difference among Black and White women (115.5 versus 60.8, PR = 2.48, 95%CI: 2.03-3.03). During the covid-19 pandemic, MMR increased in all groups of women (Black 144.1, Pardo 74.8 and White 80.5/100.000 LB), and the differences between Black and White (PR = 1.79, 95%CI: 1.64-1.95) and Black and Pardo (PR = 1.92, 95%CI: 1.77-2.09) remained. MMR was significantly higher among Black women than among White or Pardo women in all age ranges and for all causes., Conclusion: Black women presented higher MMR in all years, in all geographic regions, age groups, and causes. In Brazil, Black skin color is a key MM determinant. Reducing MM requires reducing racial disparities.

Methods: Retrospective cohort study with review of medical records of women assisted between 2015 and 2020. The variables were socio-demographic and SV characteristics, gestational age, reactions towards pregnancy and outcome. We compared outcome groups using the chi-square test, Fisher's exact test and the Kruskal-Wallis test. The significance level was 5%., Results: We evaluated the medical records of 235 women, of which 153(65%) had undergone to abortion; 17(7.2%) had a spontaneous abortion; 19(8%) remained pregnant; 25(10.6%) had an abortion denied; and 21(8.9%) had been lost to follow-up. Out of the total number of women, 44(18.7%) were adolescents, 152(65.2%) were white and 201(88.5%) had an education ≥9 years. Women who remained pregnant had a known aggressor, disclosed the pregnancy ( p  < 0.001) and were more ambivalent ( p  < 0.001) than the other groups. Gestational age was higher in the denied abortion group than in the performed abortion group ( p  < 0.001)., Conclusion: Feelings related to decision-making about abortion affected all groups, with differences. It is important to give women space to be heard, so they can make their own decisions.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of hypertensive disorders during pregnancy among Brazilian women with preterm births and to compare the epidemiological characteristics and perinatal outcomes among preterm births of women with and without hypertension., Methods: This was a secondary cross-sectional analysis of the Brazilian Multicenter Study on Preterm Birth. During the study period, all women with preterm births were included and further split into two groups according to the occurrence of any hypertensive disorder during pregnancy. Prevalence ratios were calculated for each variable. Maternal characteristics, prenatal care, and gestational and perinatal outcomes were compared between the two groups using χ2 and t-tests., Results: A total of 4,150 women with preterm births were included, and 1,169 (28.2%) were identified as having hypertensive disorders. Advanced maternal age (prevalence ratio (PR) 2.49) and obesity (PR= 2.64) were more common in the hypertensive group. The gestational outcomes were worse in women with hypertension. Early preterm births were also more frequent in women with hypertension., Conclusion: Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy were frequent among women with preterm births, and provider-initiated preterm births were the leading causes of premature births in this group. The factors significantly associated with hypertensive disorders among women with preterm births were obesity, excessive weight gain, and higher maternal age.

Objective: The objective was to compare the maternal and perinatal characteristics and outcomes between women with and without diabetes in a Brazilian cohort of women with preterm births., Methods: This was an ancillary analysis of the Brazilian Multicenter Study on Preterm Birth, which included 4,150 preterm births. This analysis divided preterm births into two groups according to the presence of diabetes; pregestational and gestational diabetes were clustered in the same Diabetes Group. Differences between both groups were assessed using χ 2 or Student's t tests., Results: Preterm births of 133 and 4,017 women with and without diabetes, respectively, were included. The prevalence of diabetes was 3.2%. Pregnant women aged ≥35 years were more common in the Diabetes Group (31.6% versus 14.0% non-diabetic women, respectively). The rate of cesarean section among patients with diabetes was 68.2% versus 52.3% in non-diabetic cases), with a gestational age at birth between 34 and 36 weeks in 78.9% of the cases and 62.1% of the controls. Large-for-gestational-age babies were 7 times more common in the Diabetes Group., Conclusion: Preterm birth among Brazilian women with diabetes was more than twice as prevalent; these women were older and had regular late preterm deliveries, usually by cesarean section. They also had a greater frequency of fetal morbidities, such as malformations and polyhydramnios, and a higher proportion of large-for-gestational-age and macrosomic neonates.

Adequately reporting of preeclampsia is a challenge. The aim of this study was to compare the diagnosis of preeclampsia based on clinical and laboratory findings and ICD-10 codes (International Classification of Diseases) at admission and discharge in a referral center, over a one-year period. Among 2,839 women admitted for childbirth, 208 presented confirmed preeclampsia, based on chart audits. Among these, 77.4% at admission presented ICD-10 codes assigned as hypertension, and 47.1% at discharge. In 14.4% of confirmed preeclampsia, ICD-10 codes for hypertension were not used. Adequate reporting of preeclampsia is key for clinical surveillance, counselling and guiding public health interventions., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Objective:  To compare cesarean section (CS) rates according to the Robson Ten Group Classification System (RTGCS) and its indications in pregnant women admitted for childbirth during the first wave of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic with those of the previous year., Materials and Methods:  We conducted a cross-sectional study to compare women admitted for childbirth from April to October 2019 (before the pandemic) and from March to September 2020 (during the pandemic). The CSs and their indications were classified on admission according to the RTGCS, and we also collected data on the route of delivery (vaginal or CS). Both periods were compared using the Chi-squared (χ 2 ) test or the Fisher exact test., Results:  In total, 2,493 women were included, 1,291 in the prepandemic and 1,202 in the pandemic period. There was a a significant increase in the CS rate (from 39.66% to 44.01%; p  = 0.028), mostly due to maternal request (from 9.58% to 25.38%; p  < 0.01). Overall, groups 5 and 2 contributed the most to the CS rates. The rates decreased among group 1 and increased among group 2 during the pandemic, with no changes in group 10., Conclusion:  There was an apparent change in the RTGSC comparing both periods, with a significant increase in CS rates, mainly by maternal request, most likely because of changes during the pandemic and uncertainties and fear concerning COVID-19., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflict of interests to declare., (Federação Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, permitting unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is properly cited. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).)

Objective:  To review literature and estimate the occurrence of preeclampsia and its complications in Brazil., Methods:  We performed an integrative review of the literature, and included observational studies published until August 2021 on the SciELO and PubMed databases that evaluated preeclampsia among pregnant women in Brazil. Other variables of interests were maternal death, neonatal death, hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelet count (HELLP) syndrome, and eclampsia. Three independent reviewers evaluated all retrieved studies and selected those that met inclusion criteria. A metanalysis of the prevalence of preeclampsia and eclampsia was also performed, to estimate a pooled frequency of those conditions among the studies included., Results:  We retrieved 304 studies after the initial search; of those, 10 were included in the final analysis, with a total of 52,986 women considered. The pooled prevalence of preeclampsia was of 6.7%, with a total of 2,988 cases reported. The frequency of eclampsia ranged from 1.7% to 6.2%, while the occurrence of HELLP syndrome was underreported. Prematurity associated to hypertensive disorders ranged from 0.5% to 1.72%., Conclusion:  The frequency of preeclampsia was similar to that reported in other international studies, and it is increasing in Brazil, probably due to the adoption of new diagnostic criteria. The development of a national surveillance network would be essential to understand the problem of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy in Brazil., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflict of interests to declare., (Federação Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, permitting unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is properly cited. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).)

Introduction:  Preeclampsia (PE) is a pregnancy complication associated with increased maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. The disease presents with recent onset hypertension (after 20 weeks of gestation) and proteinuria, and can progress to multiple organ dysfunction, with worse outcomes among early onset preeclampsia (EOP) cases (< 34 weeks). The placenta is considered the root cause of PE; it represents the interface between the mother and the fetus, and acts as a macromembrane between the two circulations, due to its villous and vascular structures. Therefore, in pathological conditions, macroscopic and microscopic evaluation can provide clinically useful information that can confirm diagnosis and enlighten about outcomes and future therapeutic benefit., Objective:  To perform an integrative review of the literature on pathological placental findings associated to preeclampsia (comparing EOP and late onset preeclampsia [LOP]) and its impacts on clinical manifestations., Results:  Cases of EOP presented worse maternal and perinatal outcomes, and pathophysiological and anatomopathological findings were different between EOP and LOP placentas, with less placental perfusion, greater placental pathological changes with less villous volume (villous hypoplasia), greater amount of trophoblastic debris, syncytial nodules, microcalcification, villous infarcts, decidual arteriolopathy in EOP placentas when compared with LOP placentas. Clinically, the use of low doses of aspirin has been shown to be effective in preventing PE, as well as magnesium sulfate in preventing seizures in cases of severe features., Conclusion:  The anatomopathological characteristics between EOP and LOP are significantly different, with large morphological changes in cases of EOP, such as hypoxia, villous infarctions, and hypoplasia, among others, most likely as an attempt to ascertain adequate blood flow to the fetus. Therefore, a better understanding of the basic macroscopic examination and histological patterns of the injury is important to help justify outcomes and to determine cases more prone to recurrence and long-term consequences., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflict of interests to declare., (Federação Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, permitting unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is properly cited. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).)

Objective:  The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a pandemic viral disease, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The impact of the disease among the obstetric population remains unclear, and the study of the placenta can provide valuable information. Adequate sampling of the placental tissue can help characterize the pathways of viral infections., Methods:  A protocol of placental sampling is proposed, aiming at guaranteeing representativity of the placenta and describing the adequate conservation of samples and their integrity for future analysis. The protocol is presented in its complete and simplified versions, allowing its implementation in different complexity settings., Results:  Sampling with the minimum possible interval from childbirth is the key for adequate sampling and storage. This protocol has already been implemented during the Zika virus outbreak., Conclusion:  A protocol for adequate sampling and storage of placental tissue is fundamental for adequate evaluation of viral infections on the placenta. During the COVID-19 pandemic, implementation of this protocol may help to elucidate critical aspects of the SARS-CoV-2 infection., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflict of interests to declare., (Federação Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, permitting unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is properly cited. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).)

Background: Kidney transplantation is associated with fertility restoration in more than 50% of women with chronic kidney disease. Pregnancy after transplantation may affect women's health and fetal development, with higher rates of abortion, fetal growth restriction, and neonatal deaths. Twin pregnancy is a condition of high-risk for adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes, and its occurrence in women with previous kidney transplantation is rare., Case: 32-year-old woman, recipient of living donor kidney transplantation, with a history of one pregnancy prior to transplantation, with current normal allograft function and no use of contraceptive method. At ten weeks of amenorrhea, ultrasound investigation showed a dichorionic diamniotic twin pregnancy. The following evaluation showed Chiari type II features in one fetus, and no detectable abnormality in the other one. There was appropriate blood pressure control with no need for an antihypertensive drug, and renal function remained normal without proteinuria. Calcium and a low dose of acetylsalicylic acid were used as preeclampsia prophylaxis. At 33 weeks of gestation, she presented premature rupture of membranes with spontaneous preterm labor. A cesarean section was performed due to the breech presentation of the first fetus. The patient persisted with normal graft function and without graft rejection during follow-up., Discussion and Conclusion: Twin pregnancies after kidney transplantation are rare, and it is most frequently associated with preterm birth. We reported a successful twin pregnancy after kidney transplantation, with good perinatal and maternal outcomes, and without graft rejection or dysfunction.

To investigate the role of TYRO3, AXL and TIM1 receptors in the Zika virus (ZIKV) cycle, we determined their mRNA expression in different placental sites of ZIKV infected tissue during pregnancy. Unexpectedly, the ZIKV infection was not related with mRNA upregulation of these receptors or changes in expression of type I and III interferons in different placental sites. Instead, a decrease of TYRO3 mRNA expression was observed in positive sites of ZIKV positive placentas in comparison to negative sites. The basis of this downregulation can help to understand how ZIKV persists in placental tissue during pregnancy., (Copyright © 2020. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Objective:  To assess maternal and perinatal outcomes of pregnancies in women with chronic hypertension (CH)., Methods:  Retrospective cohort of women with CH followed at a referral center for a 5 year period (2012-2017). Data were obtained from medical charts review and described as means and frequencies, and a Poisson regression was performed to identify factors independently associated to the occurrence of superimposed pre-eclampsia (sPE)., Results:  A total of 385 women were included in the present study; the majority were > than 30 years old, multiparous, mostly white and obese before pregnancy. One third had pre-eclampsia (PE) in a previous pregnancy and 17% of them had organ damage associated with hypertension, mainly kidney dysfunction. A total of 85% of the patients used aspirin and calcium carbonate for pre-eclampsia prophylaxis and our frequency of sPE was 40%, with an early onset (32.98 ± 6.14 weeks). Of those, 40% had severe features of PE, including 5 cases of HELLP syndrome; however, no cases of eclampsia or maternal death were reported. C-section incidence was high, gestational age at birth was 36 weeks, and nearly a third (115 cases) of newborns had complications at birth One third of the women remained using antihypertensive drugs after pregnancy., Conclusion:  Chronic hypertension is related with the high occurrence of PE, C-sections, prematurity and neonatal complications. Close surveillance and multidisciplinary care are important for early diagnosis of complications., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflict of interests to declare., (Thieme Revinter Publicações Ltda Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.)

The detection of Zika virus (ZIKV) in immunoprivileged anatomical sites, potential sites for viral persistence, may guide the confirmation of undefined cases of ZIKV infection and also bring to light unknown pathways of viral transmission. Thus, this study aimed to characterize ZIKV infection in stratified, standardized placental samples in women with exanthematic febrile manifestations during pregnancy and compare findings to the standard investigation protocol of official health agencies. To this end, a case series of placental findings within a prospective cohort study was conducted over a period of 24 months. Serum/urine were obtained at the time of clinical case identification. Placental sampling was performed following standard investigation protocol (samples of 1.0 cm sent to a reference laboratory) and in a systematic way at various regions, such as chorionic plate, chorionic villi, basal plate, amniotic membrane, and umbilical cord, for subsequent ZIKV identification and quantification. Clinical information was obtained and histological preparation with hematoxylin-eosin staining for morphological evaluation was performed. This case series included 17 placentas systematically collected. Of these, 14 were positive by qRT-PCR for ZIKV, 5 in the umbilical cord, 7 in the amniotic membrane, 7 in the chorionic plate, 13 in the chorionic villi, and 7 in the basal plate, whereas none were reported by the reference laboratory. The most common morphological and anatomopathological findings were increased stromal cellularity, villitis, calcification, maternal vascular malperfusion, placental hypoplasia, and maternal-fetal hemorrhage (intervillous thrombi). Seven women presented positive testing for ZIKV in serological and/or molecular tests during gestation in urine. While viral quantification in urine ranged from 10 1 to 10 3 FFU eq/ml, that in different placental regions ranged from 10 3 to 10 8 FFU eq/g. Thus, ZIKV can infect different regions of the placenta and umbilical cord of pregnant women, showing that the systematic collection and adequate storage of the placenta is fundamental for the detection of ZIKV in this organ. The detection of ZIKV in the placenta after several months of initial symptoms suggests that this tissue may be a site for viral persistence during pregnancy., (Copyright © 2020 Venceslau, Guida, Nobrega, Samogim, Parise, Japecanga, Toledo-Teixeira, Forato, Antolini-Tavares, Souza, Altemani, Consonni, Passini, Amaral, Proenca-Modena, Costa and The Zika-Unicamp Network.)

Objective:  To assess maternal and perinatal outcomes in pregnancies after kidney transplantation in a tertiary center in Brazil., Methods:  Retrospective cohort of pregnancies in women with kidney transplantation at the Universidade Estadual de Campinas, from January 1995 until December 2017. Medical charts were reviewed, and maternal and perinatal outcomes were described as means and frequencies. Renal function and blood pressure were evaluated during pregnancy and postpartum., Results:  A total of 22 women had at least 1 pregnancy during the considered time interval, and 3 of them had > 1 pregnancy, totalizing 25 pregnancies. The mean age at transplantation was of 24.6 ± 4.2 years old, and the mean time interval until pregnancy was of 67.8 ± 46.3 months. The most frequent complication during pregnancy was hypertension, which affected 11 (64.7%) women. The gestational age at delivery was 34.7 ± 4 weeks, and 47% of these pregnancies were preterm (< 37 weeks). A total of 88.2% of the women delivered by cesarean section. Renal function, measured by serum creatinine, remained stable during pregnancy, and the systolic blood pressure increased significantly, while the diastolic blood pressure did not differ during pregnancy., Conclusion:  Pregnancy after kidney transplantation is a rare event. Pre-eclampsia and prematurity were frequent complications, and cesarean section rates were very high. A specialized antenatal and postpartum care with a multiprofessional approach and continuous monitoring of graft function are essential for the early diagnosis of complications and improved outcomes., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interests to declare., (Thieme Revinter Publicações Ltda Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.)

Aim: To evaluate the use of analgesia for vaginal birth, in women with and without severe maternal morbidity (SMM) and to describe sociodemographic, clinical, and obstetric characteristics and maternal and perinatal outcomes associated with labor analgesia., Methods: Secondary analysis of the WHO Multicountry Survey on Maternal and Newborn Health (WHO-MCS), a global cross-sectional study performed between May 2010 and December 2011 in 29 countries. Women who delivered vaginally and had an SMM were included in this analysis and were then divided into two groups: those who received and those who did not receive analgesia for labor/delivery. We further compared maternal characteristics and maternal and perinatal outcomes between these two groups., Results: From 314,623 women originally included in WHO-MCS, 9,788 developed SMM and delivered vaginally, 601 (6.1%) with analgesia and 9,187 (93.9%) without analgesia. Women with SMM were more likely to receive analgesia than those who did not experience SMM. Global distribution of SMM was similar; however, the use of analgesia was less prevalent in Africa. Higher maternal education, previous cesarean section, and nulliparity were factors associated with analgesia use. Analgesia was not an independent factor associated with an increase of severe maternal outcome (Maternal Near Miss + Maternal Death)., Conclusions: The overall use of analgesia for vaginal delivery is low but women with SMM are more likely to receive analgesia during labor. Social conditions are closely linked with the likelihood of having analgesia during delivery and such a procedure is not associated with increased adverse maternal outcomes. Expanding the availability of analgesia in different levels of care should be a concern worldwide.

Introduction  Preeclampsia, a multifactorial disease with pathophysiology not yet fully understood, is a major cause of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality, especially when preterm. The diagnosis is performed when there is an association between arterial hypertension and proteinuria or evidence of severity. There are unanswered questions in the literature considering the timing of delivery once preterm preeclampsia has been diagnosed, given the risk of developing maternal complications versus the risk of adverse perinatal outcomes associated with prematurity. The objective of this systematic review is to determine the best timing of delivery for women diagnosed with preeclampsia before 37 weeks of gestation. Methods  Systematic literature review, performed in the PubMed database, using the terms preeclampsia , parturition and timing of delivery to look for studies conducted between 2014 and 2017. Studies that compared the maternal and perinatal outcomes of women who underwent immediate delivery or delayed delivery, in the absence of evidence of severe preeclampsia, were selected. Results  A total of 629 studies were initially retrieved. After reading the titles, 78 were selected, and their abstracts, evaluated; 16 were then evaluated in full and, in the end, 6 studies (2 randomized clinical trials and 4 observational studies) met the inclusion criteria. The results were presented according to gestational age range (< 34 weeks and between 34 and 37 weeks) and by maternal and perinatal outcomes, according to the timing of delivery, considering immediate delivery or expectant management. Before 34 weeks, the maternal outcomes were similar, but the perinatal outcomes were significantly worse when immediate delivery occurred. Between 34 and 37 weeks, the progression to severe maternal disease was slightly higher among women undergoing expectant management, however, with better perinatal outcomes. Conclusions  When there is no evidence of severe preeclampsia or impaired fetal well-being, especially before 34 weeks, the pregnancy should be carefully surveilled, and the delivery, postponed, aiming at improving the perinatal outcomes. Between 34 and 37 weeks, the decision on the timing of delivery should be shared with the pregnant woman and her family, after providing information regarding the risks of adverse outcomes associated with preeclampsia and prematurity., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Thieme Revinter Publicações Ltda Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.)